Reflecting on educational preparedness and professional development for early-career nurse faculty: A phenomenological study

Bedside nurses are assuming the faculty role without the necessary skill set to meet their role’s rigorous expectations. The researchers sought to explore the lived experiences of early-career nursing faculty and what it feels to be unprepared to teach. A qualitative research design using semi-structured interviews served as the primary data collection method. The purposive sample consisted of nine graduate-prepared early-career nursing faculty with less than five years’ experience teaching who felt unprepared for the faculty role. Four themes emerged from the data: (1) balance between theory and practice; (2) socialization to the role; (3) real-world experience; and (4) ownership for ongoing learning. The findings bring transparency for nurse faculty to assess the educational and transitional process outcomes from early-career nursing faculties’ perspectives.